The hour may well be short, and most of the decision time is already in the past. We may be a lot closer to 1st Thessalonians 4:16-17 than we think. And if many are gathered up and some of us are still here, then Katy bar the door because we're going to have to do it the hard way.

There is a 9 in 10 chance if you fought in DC, you would be fighting the enemy. I’m certain there are cities across the country with similar odds.

How would a person go about organizing a group to fight? Social media? I'm thinking there are more serious groups out there than a bunch of old men on Tman. Soldiers of fortune?

Mark, Your first response to this thread is well stated. Thanks
The times are difficult.
Many decent Christians and many just plain good folks are truly unsure of what is going on.
Thanks

Mac

Let’s see if I can actually put this into words…
First thing every christian needs to understand is, it isn’t about me. It is about the Lord God and His purposes. Not ours.

Scripture is to be interpreted with scripture, and taken in context. This includes all of scripture. We are supposed to seek the Lord and let HIM speak to us, lead us, and guide us through His word. Not find something in His word that substantiates what WE want and use that as a basis for our actions.

In the Old Testament, God spoke. He spoke through prophets, and leaders. He told them very clearly His will (at times). He made them promises. Because they were HIS will and fit HIS purposes at that time.

In this particular time in history, God has not clearly said, “ I will for the United States to be fixed so if you fight you will prevail.”

So, with that. It takes each individual Christian to seek the Lord and HIS purposes for them. It is hard for a human to wrap their head around ( and to be humble enough to accept it) that perhaps it is Gods will, for the one world government to happen, or primary purpose for them to be born.. is to die a tragic death, so that someone else might be saved… for example.

But this is exactly what Christ did. We are to model our lives after Him.
So, What I am trying to say is … it is about Him. We want the country fixed. We want our rights upheld, we want, we want, we want…
How many have humbly asked… Lord, I surrender all to you. What do you want? What is your purpose in all of this ? Please allow me to clearly see from a heavenly perspective your will and purposes.
Show me Father so I might walk in step with you and accomplish YOUR will.
Then follow to the instructions given. Be that to stand or kneel, fight or surrender, build or tear down, save or give.
Love the Lord God with ALL your heart, mind, and spirit, and love your neighbor as yourself.
To HIS purposes and glory !

IF there is a god and that god wants to tell me something it will have to tell me itself. Not through some self proclaimed prophet. So far....silence

Thanks Mac. I agree. Everyone is in this together but God has said through His Word and through His Son that the Christians are called and as such are chosen to be God's representatives on earth. Why? Paul tells us in Ephesians 3. This is a VERY helpful Scripture to pray upon and understand (Ephesians is my favorite book of Scripture: 3 chapters of doctrine followed by 3 chapters of what to do/be. In chapter 3 Paul says God's people (the Church) are being gathered until the time of the 2nd Advent (Coming); Ephesians 3:8-10;

To me (Paul), the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things (the Church); so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. (satan and his angels)

How hard is it being asked to walk with godliness amidst our Creator's wonderful crafting of us as rational, free thinking nature? Well, it's not possible by ourselves. Never has been. Never will be. And when you mention good folks, sure there have always been good people in the definition of humans. Being a "god" is defined as the one who gets to decide what's good and what's evil.

It's always been this way, ever since Adam didn't stop Eve from being tempted. And there it is right there. Adam knew what was godly. My gosh, he'd walked with God in the Garden! Can you imagine? Being with God, surrounded by immeasurable wonder and "Life" and "Light" and not a care and no mortgage, student debt, in-law squabbles, trap thieves, car accidents, cancer, typhoons, earthquakes, carbon debates, trans anything. Rainbows and judgement were still unimaginable (isn't it interesting how the homosexual movement has used "rainbows" to symbolize its might and authority? They mock God with their rainbow flag and this is no accident.... because the father of lies doesn't deal in accidents. The rainbow flag is well thought out and certainly premeditated because we humans have always decided we are gods and we will tell God what to do and how to do it.

I recall when God said to Noah after God destroyed the wickedness upon the earth;
[i]I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth. It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud, and I will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and never again shall the water become a flood to destroy all flesh. (Genesis 9:13–15). [/I]

God's still in control y'all. A few of us (me some days) might be like God's anointed prophet Habakkuk, who lived 600 years before Jesus. He was a prophet, and as every prophet before and after him, he preached for Israel to repent and return to God as a people. For the people of Judah, chosen by God, to live by faith, not by sight.
Habakkuk's words are the words of this thread perhaps?
I say them MANY days...

Habakkuk 1:2-4;
How long, O LORD, will I call for help, and You will not hear?
I cry out to You, “Violence!”
Yet You do not save.
Why do You make me see iniquity,
And cause me to look on wickedness?
Yes, destruction and violence are before me;
Strife exists and contention arises.
Therefore the law is ignored.
And justice is never upheld.
For the wicked surround the righteous;
Therefore justice comes out perverted.

We know Habakkuk was crying out for God to "do something!"
To deliver His people from the evil Assyrians.
And we know God was doing something.
He rose us the Chaldeans.... the Babylonians... who would conquer the known world (and the Assyrians with Nineveh as their capital) in about 20 years (never been done like that before - it'd be like America conquering the world by 1800 after it won it's independence).

God's up to something still.
And He's still reigning over all and while that happens, we can be like Habakkuk and cry out to God "How long, O Lord, will I call for help?"
God is always sending someone.
Our wonderment is that in our time, we're absolutely immeasurably blessed by God's grace to know of Jesus' teachings (the Bible) so that we might understand - as Paul was always praying us Gentiles would - to know the Gospel hope, which is an eternity with God.

Our hope is not temporal. It's eternal brother Chancey and we stand united in Christ until that time.
Teach truth. Love well.
Be this world's salt and light and a testimony to the enemy of who we are.
And PLEASE Christians, understand, we're supposed to gather as a body as an ecclesia..... the Church.... Big C......
It's not just a Sunday thing.


Blessings,
Mark

A lot of people like to talk big about fighting--whoever some of y'all are talking about fighting.

If you really want to fight you would have already done it.

Apparently the reward comes in the afterlife when we are deceased? I have a hard time grasping it all. I'd hate to see my kids and Grandkids suffer but that seems to be in the big plan.

I think there might be a small difference in your kid drowning while away at camp and you knowing they are going to drown and letting it happen.

Danny
You need to put you ear to the rail if you want to hear the train coming. I can't figure out why some of these guys feel so persecuted?? I personally haven't had one person knock on my door or send me mail. Asking me to join them in attacking God or to burn a church. There are several churches within easy Walking distance of my house.
I did get a really nice what looked to be hand written message the other day. Asking would I want to come join one local Jehovah churches. That church is way the other side of town. I'd have to drive by couple dozen other churches to get there.
Be way easier to just walk over across the street that Lutheran church, be persecuted closer to home, if I felt need to suffer.

Mac

Mark, my ear was on the rail for years. Maybe Im just not good enough?

Why didn’t Habakkuk take up his sword and add to the violence he was crying out to God about? Because vengeance is the Lords. Habakkuk’s call was for repentance and humbling ourselves before God....that’s our battle cry. I know my pride is a bigger threat to me in the big picture than anything the culture, democrats, or anyone else can do to me. Thanks for the verse mark i hope I’m not putting words into your mouth this is just what I see in the text as related to this topic.

In regards to the Old Testament stories, the point of them is to point to Christ. David vs Goliath, points to Jesus’ ultimate victory over sin and death and the rescue of His people. Samson, Deborah, Gideon....points to Jesus as our perfect judge. Jesus is out perfect, judge, perfect High priest, perfect intercesor, perfect mediator, perfect sacrifice, and perfect savior. When we read ourselves into the hero roles of the Old Testament we are missing the point, it’s about Gods glory, not us saving ourselves in His name, where He gets 99% and we get 1% credit.

The analogy of the man needing rescue and not taking the help is not in the Bible and irrelevant.

I humbly hope I’m making good points and have been praying about how to answer, since I’m home with sick kids and wife from work today.

Nobody is

Who here believes it is vengeance to ward off evil?

Amen

How would the statement "The analogy of the man needing rescue and not taking the help is not in the Bible and irrelevant"? how would that fit in with when that small voice speaking to us in a convicting way and we over ride it, then the next time its even easier not to listen and become calloused over.

God sent Jesus, but how often do we reject Him? Are we waiting for another, perhaps looking for a bigger scene and grandstanding?

Sometimes the whale swallows us and pukes us out on a beach. Jonah, must have surely been a back-sliding Baptist, that would make anyone puke, even a big fish, lol.

Lord, let the end come swiftly with the least amount of suffering. Cheating and lying is the norm these days and the Lord will wipe this Earth clean of this filth some day soon.

Or maybe, Lord please wait 'til my family and friends are saved!

I wonder how a God fearing people justified violence to expell a king and create a nation? I guess the pastors of that era got it wrong.